THE ULTIMATE STREET CAR?

> THE INAUGURAL ‘OPTIMA SEARCH FOR THE ULTIMATE STREET CAR’ EVENT SAW A KILLER WEEKEND OF TRACK ACTION AT CALDER PARK

THE pro touring juggernaut that is the Optima Search For The Ultimate Street Car (OSUSC) hit Australia for the first time on 16 and 17 November at Calder Park. While events like Drag Challenge and Drag Week feature the quickest road-registered straight-line machinery, the OSUSC aims to find the best allround street car in terms of performance, fit and finish, engineering and comfort.

For the first Aussie competition, the class structure was simplified to be Classic (pre-1990), Modern (post-1990) and Fast Four. All cars had to have production tags, fully enclosed wheels and wear street-legal, non-competition tyres with a tread-wear rating of 200 or higher (meaning no semi-slicks).

The Aussie OSUSC had four segments (motorkhana, drags, circuit sprinting and speedstop), forgoing the 160km road rally leg done in America. Each segment was worth 100 points, with a bonus five points up for grabs if entrants entered the show ’n’ shine judging.

For the first year, Optima wasn’t expecting big numbers, and 14 cars fronted up to Calder on the first day, but the variety on offer was awesome. The event’s entry cost of $150 for two days of track action was a dead-set bargain, and the small group of entrants meant there was bulk track time.

Having spectated at three OUSCI events in the US, I was keen to see which old-school Aussie rides turned up and I wasn’t disappointed, with Tony Cott’s super-clean LS1 ’69 Camaro, James Mackie’s blown Ls1-powered XY Falcon drift car and Jason Briffa’s 351ci XT Falcon wagon.

But the combination of professional hot-shoe Nathan Pretty behind the wheel and a thundering Sam’s Performance-built LS7 under the bonnet meant the Harrop CV8 Monaro nailed a nearperfect 403-point score out of a possible 405 to win outright.

After the trophies were handed out, Jimi Day from Optima USA announced that both Pretty and runner-up Chaise Delia would be given VIP trips to the 2020 SEMA Show and OUSCI competition.

“We are really excited to come to Australia, and we’re committed to coming back to Australia in February 2021,” Day said. “We’re committed to growing the event and building a community here.”

Powered by a Sam’s Performance drysumped 427ci LS7, Harrop’s VZ Monaro is a seriously cool piece of work, designed to show what the company is capable of building in-house. With a Harrop 12-bolt IRS rear end, 18x10 and 18x11 Forgeline GA3R wheels, a stripped interior painted Lamborghini Orange, Harrop Ultimate big-brake kit, and a custom carbonfibre bodykit, the 700hp NA monster was too tough for the old-school muscle

1: 2: Jason Waye hung around after Drag Challenge to run his Tuff Mounts ’81 GH Sigma. Its LS1 runs a VCM 710 cam, but is otherwise pretty mild to pass SA’S strict roadworthy and engineering inspections. Waye finished third in the Vintage class and was quickest at the drags!